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Shine: Using Brain Science to Get the Best from Your People

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Your job as a manager is getting harder all the time. But your most critical responsibility—especially in today’s world of intensifying competition—is how to help your people shine their brightest.

How do you inspire solid contributors to strive for more? What should you do if a star player falls off their game?

In Shine, bestselling author, psychiatrist, and ADD expert Edward Hallowell draws on brain science, performance research, and his own experience helping people maximize their potential to present a proven process for getting the best from your people:

-Select—put the right people in the right job, and give them responsibilities that “light up” their brain.
-Connect—strengthen interpersonal bonds among team members.
-Play—help people unleash their imaginations at work.
-Grapple and Grow—when the pressure’s on, enable employees to achieve mastery of their work.
-Shine—use the right rewards to promote loyalty and stoke your people’s desire to excel.

Brimming with Hallowell’s trademark candor and warmth, Shine is a vital new resource for all managers seeking to inspire excellence in their teams.

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 13, 2011

41 people are currently reading
831 people want to read

About the author

Edward M. Hallowell

42 books633 followers
Edward (Ned) Hallowell, M.D., is a child and adult psychiatrist, a NY Times bestselling author, a world-renowned speaker and a leading authority in the field of ADHD. He has authored twenty books including the 1994 ground-breaking New York Times best-seller on ADHD, Driven to Distraction. In aggregate, Dr. Hallowell's books have sold more than 2 million copies on various psychological topics including how to: raise children into happy adults, manage worry, develop focus, forgiveness, connecting on a deeper level and how to inspire the best from employees. His most recent book was his Memoir, Because I Come From A Crazy Family The Making Of A Psychiatrist. His next book, ADHD 2.0 releases on January 12, 2021. Pre-order your copy today.

He is the host of “Distraction,” a weekly podcast that offers insights, strategies and tactics for coping and thriving in this crazy-busy, 24/7 over-connected modern world.

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5 stars
152 (33%)
4 stars
176 (38%)
3 stars
102 (22%)
2 stars
22 (4%)
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7 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
Profile Image for Schmacko.
261 reviews72 followers
May 27, 2011
Dr. Edward M. Hallowell is an expert on ADHD, so it’s kind of funny that he’s written a business book on motivating your employees. (Are my employees hyperactive children? Some managers might say their employees act this way!) As a scientist with vast knowledge on the human brain and behavior, Hallowell can really strut his stuff. As a writer, he is pretty clear and concise. He quotes a lot of great sources, and some of his stories and examples are fascinating.

There are three reasons I am giving this book three stars; despite the interesting subject and some neat ideas, Hallowell forgot his core audience, I feel the style of writing is fairly typical of business books, and I believe many of his anecdotes could be better.

First of all, his core audience is comprised of business people. As an organizational consultant and facilitator, I know that his lively cover and his subject are likely to attract trainers, HR people, and creative types to pick up this book. The people it doesn’t attract – the people it should attract – are the managers. The writing could do more to capture these audiences.

Sadly, I have found that you can’t just bring up a bunch of good ideas and have managers cherry pick among them for what they think will work. True, a few managers are creative like that; this book will set them afire with employee-engaging fury. Other supervisors want to see the ideas in action; still others want to be given an outline on how to work the ideas into their workplace. A good many supervisors want step-by-step directions. It’s a scale, and my guess is that only about one in four managers is really creative enough to take Hallowell’s ideas and run with them. The other three have some level of creativity from “Show me and I’ll figure it out,” to “Give me exact directions, and I will follow them to the letter.”

Hallowell taps into the first, creative type. He misses the people looking for concise examples, guidance, or explicit instructions. Perhaps it can be argued that the less inventive managers wouldn’t think to pick up Hallowell’s book. However, if you pick up another book from last year – Chip and Dan Heath’s Switch – you find a creative, energetic read that tells engrossing stories AND includes step-by-step instructions. In other words, Switch succeeds with difference audiences where I feel Shine fails.

The writing style is also a little pedestrian. Hallowell tells an anecdote (we’ll get to the quality of that in a minute), outlines what his story means, gives a lot of facts and figures and studies, and then lists off a lot of neat stuff you can do. It gets old. It’s also been done about a bajillion times before in a bajillion other business books.

Finally, his anecdotes are wan. Hallowell says they’re from live studies, but they feel so dull, simple and lifeless. There is no emotional grab. Perhaps as a doctor, Hallowell has stripped all the personal out of these stories to protect doctor-patience confidence. I’m just guessing, because as real people, Hallowell’s examples were thin and hollow.

Again, I think of Chip and Dan Heath. They tell stories about Jerry Sternin going to Vietnam to help underprivileged families learn how to feed their children healthy meals. The Heaths talk about teenage cancer survivors and how to encourage them to take their medication. They bring up examples on how Target got so colorful. That’s engaging, fascinating stuff.

Hallowell writes like this: “Greg, an ambitious talented man in his thirties, knew something was seriously wrong. He wasn’t working anywhere near his best, and despite his efforts to stay positive, he was feeling more and more cynical about his job.” Dull. Sorry, maybe I lack empathy, but I don’t care.

That being said, Hallowell’s studies and insights contain a lot of wisdom. He obviously has a vast store of data, and he has some ideas for how business could use these to engage employees. He just hasn’t quite written the book that is direct and engrossing enough so that almost any manager and supervisor in need could immediately use it.
Profile Image for Wai-kit Ng.
397 reviews1 follower
August 25, 2017
Not bad. Clear and simple framework to get the best from our people. 5 steps: (1) Select - get the right people on the bus; (2) Connect - form the team, build the trust; (3) Play - unleash creativity and remove fear; (4) Grapple and Grow - achieve "flow"; and (5) Shine - recognize and reward.
343 reviews
July 16, 2017
I have been following research in neuroscience for many years now and esp like to explore how the new discoveries can be applied to daily life - my initial focus has been on increasing retention... and the idea to additionally understand potential impact on enhanced performance was intriguing enough for me to overcome my inertia of reading management related books...

It's an easy read... though I can't say I learnt something new... reference to brain science is just superficially touched upon and it's just used as a underlying theme to weave a story...

The book combines concepts from 3 diverse fields of study - (1) brain science, mainly recent studies that confirm its neuroplasticity or ability to grow at any age and how some actions and activities can promote growth; (2) emerging paradigm of positive psychology that suggests that dissecting what is wrong is not always helpful and far more can be gained instead by focusing on strengths and achieving the best with what one has; and (3) new insights into roots of happiness and that a happy state of mind is critical for growth and success...

No new ideas - all these have been talked of earlier in many different scenarios... the book presents 5 steps and presents it as the cycle of excellence - simple obvious steps like 'selecting' the right task to build the motivation and passion; creating a 'connected' work environment to inspire, to develop association and ownership; encouraging 'play' to activate the imagination; challenging just enough to motivate to 'grapple and grow', manage the drudgery, distractions, challenges and make progress; and recognising efforts thru gestures or big rewards to build up the 'shine'...

Most of us are aware and possibly apply most of these and the author says that the key is in bringing them all together that makes the whole much greater than the sum of the parts... guess doesn't hurt to be reminded again... anything if it helps - us as individuals or to inspire others around us!!

As I completed the book, I was left with two thoughts -

'best efforts fail not because we aren't working hard but because we r maybe working too hard'... think about it... how often do we try to overpower the problem rather than figure it out?

'we can learn more from success than failure...' in our obsession with learning from failure we overlook the scientific reality that success has a much greater influence on brain than failure... far more can be achieved by investing in our strengths !
Profile Image for Melsene G.
1,016 reviews5 followers
September 16, 2019
This is book is primarily for folks who manage employees although you can take the concepts and use them in everyday life. This book is one of many in the neuroscience field that attempts to help folks improve their lives and work, and to be happy.

Chapter 1 starts off with the five steps to peak performance which covers the "Cycle of Excellence" described therein. Find constructive ways to get the best out of yourself and your people. A positive atmosphere helps the brain. Exercise increases BDNF which stimulates growth of new brain cells. Seek consistent excellence with improvement over time at a specific task(s). The five steps are: Select, Connect, Play, Grapple and Grow, and Shine. There are separate chapters on each of the five but here is a quick sum.

Select- something you're good at, you like to do, and adds value to the project or organization. Be in the right job. Connect- with people, be in a positive environment without fear. Play-use your imagination and be engaged as it will yield creativity. Grapple & Grow-gain mastery, challenge your people to contribute important things to the organization. Shine-recognize your people with validation and praise.

There are a few tests or short questionnaires you can take. One is at p.52-55. You can also go to kolbe.com. This book has great advice. I would encourage those of you in leadership to check it out. If you're well read in the field, you will recognize familiar names such as Martin Seligman, Carol Dweck, Norman Doidge, George Vaillant, Angela Duckworth, Mihaly C, Myers and others that have written and studied neuroplasticity and brain science, positive psychology, flow, and grit. All good stuff. I've read all these authors so you can check my reviews of some of their work.
Profile Image for Jim.
23 reviews1 follower
Read
January 11, 2022
Cycle of Excellence brings out the best in all people:

Select: right people in right jobs, responsibilities that "light up" their brains
Connect: Strengthen interpersonal bonds among team members
Play: Help unleash imaginations at work
Grapple and Grow: enable to overcome pressure to achieve mastery
Shine: Use the right rewards to stimulate loyalty and people's desire to excel.

The author references a good amount of psychology and medical research at a very high level that reinforces this framework. In general it makes intuitive sense that finding the best fit between employee skills, passion, and business needs results in higher output. This book focuses in on that concept, providing sub-frameworks for each point in "cycle of excellence" to help managers raise their awareness of these concepts.
Profile Image for Katherina.
491 reviews52 followers
June 12, 2018
I read this in order to better train our supervisors, but I felt like I learned a lot that I can use in my life too! It was engaging and interesting, while still delivering the information in a professional manner.
Profile Image for John Harris.
78 reviews1 follower
June 27, 2017
Not a waste of time, but pretty basic stuff. The author does outline it in 5 steps so it is easy to read and stay on track with the content.
Profile Image for Toby Welch.
4 reviews1 follower
September 10, 2017
Excellent book! I highly recommended! It helps to have a good and health connecting with people! One quote said, "I work for you!" It is not about me, but it is about people how we shine them!
Profile Image for Kinho Chan.
83 reviews12 followers
May 8, 2018
The ideas were good, but the supporting evidence was very much lacking.
Profile Image for Chu Qiao.
191 reviews
June 11, 2018
It is an easy read.
select-connect-play-grapple and grow- recognitions
20 reviews
September 10, 2024
Nugget: it’s always best to think of three things when trying to motivate others that work with you. 1) What are they good at? 2) What do they love to do? 3) How do they add value to the organization? By asking them these questions you have the ability to find, where the best fit and will find the most joy in their work. Be present and have fun at work. Make friends. All of these things make a job fulfilling.
Profile Image for Bob Selden.
Author 7 books39 followers
September 4, 2016
Shine has one of the best introductions I have read in a long while. Hallowell’s story of meeting “Dr. Shine” at the airport was inspiring. This story also gave the author the opportunity to overview the content of the book and the concepts he was to cover. I couldn’t wait to see what was to come and eagerly turned the pages.

My enthusiasm dissipated somewhat as the book progressed. Not that it’s not good – it is. Hallowell does a great job of synthesising much of the brain psychology research into good messages for managers. However, I felt the explanation of the “Why?” at times overpowered and overshadowed the “How?” (this might work for managers).

For example, there was plenty of explanation, but merely two to three paragraphs on how a manager might use the important concept of framing/reframing.

For a visual reader such as myself, the “Cycle of Excellence” would lend itself to a visual/diagram. I could then see where the five key concepts – (Select, Connect, Play, Grapple and Grow) fitted in the cycle. This would also have been very useful as a review tool and as an “on the desk reminder” for everyday use at work.

To me, the book seems to be a cross between a management text and a “how to” for managers. If the target audience is indeed managers, then they might need to do some extrapolation of the concepts to work out how to apply them in practise. There were however, a number of places where the author gives a list of things one can do to implement some of the concepts of Shine and this is useful. In particular, Chapter 7 “The Cycle of Excellence” which summarises the book, will be most useful for managers – in fact, one could almost read the summary first and then go to other parts of the book if one needed further explanation.

In summary, this is a good book. Managers will find some good motivational tips for keeping oneself and others “shining”.
Profile Image for Daniela Raț.
5 reviews33 followers
February 5, 2017
Reading this book, I learned to better target some questions concerning myself and the relationships between me and the the people surrounding me. I think we can apply some of the principle revealed in the book in everyday life, not only in management and relationships at work.
It also helped me identify some things that I was always wondering or concerning about, but didn't know very well where they came from or how to understand them better, thus making it easier for me to tackle future situations and understand the previous ones with all their consequences.
I think if one keeps an open mind while reading the book, and doesn't get stuck imagining precisely the situations revealed there, it can provide some serious insight and help oneself both with introspection and in relationships with others, as the book aims to do in the first place.
Profile Image for Marcia.
3,777 reviews15 followers
July 27, 2011
While targeted to business, there is so much overlap with education.

There wasn't much new here. Hallowell's Cycle of Excellence: Select, Connect, Play, Grapple and Grow and Shine seem pretty familiar. The book did have some interesting passages: Having at least one "best friend" at work greatly improves job satisfaction and productivity. "Working harder" (what does that really mean? Working more) doesn't usually solve anything if you are struggling in your work--it probably just means you are in the wrong job. Most of our creative time is outside of work, not at our desks. And again--the myth of multi-tasking.
Quick interesting reading.
Profile Image for Ariadna73.
1,726 reviews119 followers
February 28, 2013
Here is my comment in my Spanish Blog: http://lunairereadings.blogspot.com/2...
I found the most amazing quotes in this book. It is a great reference and a source of such good advice about how to help people increase their value and overcome their limitations in business and in personal life. But it is not the average manager-help book.

It really takes the time to explain the processes behind the most difficult problems that happen to workers and teams. I will definitely use it as one of my references for future meetings and business conversations.
Profile Image for Mikal.
106 reviews22 followers
March 30, 2013
Quick read with easy to follow concepts as to what factors lead to success from teams and employees.

I suspect that much of this book is biased by a "golden rule" philosophy held by the author (as it's clear that more Machiavellian approaches than "Play" are in effect at many of our top performing organizations and teams.

So with that selection bias in mind.

The priniciples are sound and easy to understand. I may not refer back to the book often but the five principles beginning with selecting - getting the right people in the right jobs; to shine - giving people recognition are concepts that are easy to keep at hand.
Profile Image for Rick Jackson.
5 reviews5 followers
March 1, 2011
I found this book to be okay in re-affirming some of the understanding I of Brain Science that I already knew, but it is rather remedial and obvious in many of its application. Like some stress is good too much stress bad. Or if you're at an impasse, stop and do something else and don't think about it. I didn't consider the book a waste of time because re-affirmation is not a bad thing, but there was little that the book taught me.
6 reviews
June 10, 2013
Shine outlines all the little things you can't put your finger on that make great managers and workplaces so amazing. The recaps at the end of each chapter were super helpful in organizing my thoughts and notes too. With simple stories, case studies and insights, Shine shows how to get the best out of the people you work with, and build a case for a better workplace.

(Full disclosure: I listened to this as an audiobook, so I can't really speak to how easy to read it actually is)
Profile Image for Elizabeth7781.
223 reviews4 followers
January 19, 2014
What drew me to this book was the fact that the author is Ned Hallowell, who wrote 'Driven to Distraction', one of the best books I've read on ADHD. He is a credible psychiatrist so I was interested to see what else he had to say about motivation. This is an easy and enjoyable read if you don't stop to highlight every other paragraph (bad habit of mine).
Profile Image for Jonathan Cassie.
Author 6 books9 followers
April 9, 2012
Being the neuroscience nerd that I am, I wanted the brain science to be way more "hardcore" than Hallowell offers. This isn't a bad book by any means, I just wanted more cutting edge research and less business school. Still, there's content here well worth considering as I plan a management practice.
Profile Image for Martin Hernandez.
910 reviews32 followers
June 25, 2013
De lectura ágil, este libro contiene varios buenos consejos para mejorar el "management" del personal que tengas a cargo. Presenta una especie de "método" o algo así, para empoderar a los empleados, que me parece un poco difícil de implementar, pero dejando eso aparte, me quedo con los consejos, que son muy valiosos.
Profile Image for Alicia.
381 reviews8 followers
August 6, 2011
This was an excellent and highly readable management book. I'm not even sure why I picked it up, as I am not in management, but it was compelling and good and I just kept going back to it. Highly recommend!
Profile Image for Rosanna.
106 reviews1 follower
March 6, 2013
This book was excellent. I enjoyed the advice it gave along with the explanations based on biology and psychology. The tone is nice and it is fun to read. It was nice to know that there is more than one way to go about a task.
Profile Image for Kim.
1,475 reviews17 followers
March 4, 2012
Read for a management class, but frankly it didn't impress me.
2 reviews
March 25, 2012
A refreshing approach to the challenge of creating an environment where people want to come to work. This should be common sense, but is highly uncommon.
6 reviews21 followers
May 8, 2012
For those who like to know the science behind motivation, It is really nice pick...
I loved this book for the fact it has really practical guidelines that can be adapted easily.
Profile Image for Suresh.
10 reviews
May 26, 2012
This was a ver fast read and enjoyable. I reaaly liked the shoe shine story. I have started to use some of the techniques at work.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews

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